Prepositions: How to Choose the Right Preposition

Appropriate Prepositions

for movement in space

ran after the thief; sailed against the tide;

walked along the path; moved slowly around the garden;

ran before the chariot; followed behind the royal coach;

went beyond the border; traveled by train;

they passed by our house; slid down the embankment;

drove for three kilometers beyond the village;

they left for Cape Town;

walked from the mall to their home; walked into the room;

bounced off the wall; jumped onto the chair;

climbed over the fence; walked past the pond;

came round the corner; flew through the clouds;

the smell spread throughout the house; driving to town;

moved the bed toward the window (more common in American English);

moved the bed towards the window (more common in British English);

climbed up the ladder; went to Chicago via Rome;

he went with her; don’t leave without your coat …

for movement in time

worked during the night; walked for many hours;

rained from three o’clock; it took over an hour;

continued past the hour;

stayed awake through the night;

no rain throughout the summer;

worked from nine to five; toward the evening;

towards the evening;

reached her destination within a couple of hours …

for fixed point in space

leaned against the wall; berthed alongside the wharf;

a cottage amid the forest;

a solitary cedar among the oaks;

a solitary cedar amongst the oaks;

a flag wrapped around a pole;

the old door served as a table for the workmen;

sat at the table; present at school; at work;

stood before the altar; hid behind the shed;

below sea level; the ice beneath the snow;

sat beside the pond; the alley between the two buildings;

the tree growing beyond the fence;

the window by the back door;

the third house on the left, down this road;

all, except that building, were damaged;

the key for the front door; see the lake from the balcony;

logs in the fireplace; live in Tokyo; biscuits inside that tin;

to crackle like the leaves of the Lombardy poplar;

anchored near the shore; on the leeward side of the island;

keep off the grass; grass grew on the path;

parked opposite the coffee shop; slept outside the tent;

hang the picture over the fireplace;

the shop round the corner;

the moon peeking through the trees;

a notice nailed to the door;

somewhere toward the back of the room;

somewhere towards the back of the room;

the puppy slept under the bed;

the puppy slept underneath the bed; the shop up the road;

sat upon the boulder; lives with her grandparents;

a hut stood within the grove; within a mile;

slept without the tent;

a family without a house after the storm …

for fixed point in time

will call you between appointments;

stayed awake beyond midnight;

complete your homework by eight o’clock;

will be away from the middle of this month;

born in autumn; in July; in 2001; will arrive in an hour;

the afternoon is the warmest part of the day;

on Tuesday, we’ll swim; fixing the house over the holidays;

no coffee since breakfast; won’t come till three o’clock;

won’t come until three o’clock …

for much else besides movement and fixed points in space and time

knows everything about birds;

a trustworthy person who is above suspicion;

came across a new idea;

number five comes after number four;

stealing is against the law;

shared the fruit among three people; around six feet tall;

nations at war; nations at peace; children at play;

all at rest; look at them;

number four comes before number five;

lagging behind in their work; the genius behind the idea;

temperature dropped below freezing;

learn other parts of speech besides prepositions;

shared the fruit between two people;

expect between ten and twenty people;

beyond my wildest dreams; a note written by the author;

bananas sold by weight;

knows everything concerning birds;

completed the task despite his injury;

seen everyone except him; bought this computer for you;

we are for the new method; she is mature for her age;

suffering from dehydration; heard the news from him;

speak in English; write in pencil; to be in doubt;

to be in debt; always in a hurry; plays in the band;

the girl in the black shorts; not lacking in ideas;

knowledge captured and transformed into software;

it looks like rain; she is a friend of mine;

the sound of thunder; the president of the club;

two meters of cotton fabric; tired of social media;

wrote an essay on self-hypnosis; workers on strike;

going on vacation; spoke over the telephone;

the cost per liter; regarding our discussion;

prefer boxing to wrestling; give it to him;

under a hundred people there;

the matter is under discussion;

depend upon the goalkeeper; he is unlike his brother;

Italy versus Brazil; a book with illustrations;

finished the project with difficulty; paralyzed with fear;

bored with social media (not bored of social media) …